Tell me: how do you structure your PhD workday?
Are you following a general 9-5 schedule, assuming you’ll finish your work during those hours (and if not, you’ll squeeze in a little or a lot of extra time in the evenings or on the weekends)?
How do you know you are making progress? Do you use word count or other metrics to keep track?
I have come to realise that academic productivity is — and always will be — non-linear. In the face of this inconvenient truth, we adopt all sorts of systems and conventions in an attempt to keep a sense of control over how our work is going.
– Time-based systems such as an 8-hour workday.
– Output-based systems such as word count.
– Peer-based systems as in: “what is everyone else doing??”
– Effort-based systems when our hours or word count, or whatever our system is, fails to reassure us – at which point we start moving on to thinking we should be doing more, especially when it looks like nothing much is happening on the page.
Maybe if we just keep at it until we absolutely can’t do any more, we will have done enough. But will it be enough?? Feels like it is never enough.
One idea changed the way I think about how to best manage PhD work (and the question of ‘doing enough’): manage your energy, not your time.
It is about understanding your own rhythms, your own creativity — and letting those guide your work. Being aware of your energy levels is essential in making this work.
In practical language: most of us have a few hours each day when we are mentally sharp and we have most mental energy.
Use these hours for your most challenging academic tasks, like writing, every day.
Prioritise this work above all else.
That’s it. That’s the idea.
The rest of the day can be filled with meetings and other tasks, but your most important work gets done. Every single workday.
Now, there is a lot more to this as in life tends to be complicated, but simply reflecting on how this approach compares to how you manage your time and energy now is a good place to start.
Maybe you’ll notice a pattern of working lots of hours without feeling you are getting much done at all.
Or perhaps there are so many distractions you feel you never quite get round to uninterrupted work for a few hours.
Perhaps both.
What do you notice? And does the idea of managing your energy — rather than your time — appeal?
If you’d like support, I am available for mentoring and I would be delighted to work with you. Or, check out my online course — it guides you through designing and implementing what a highly effective work routine, which can help you finish your PhD in just 2-3 hours a day.